I had a spiritual experience while I was reading some poetry. I was so moved by it I found myself crying and I wasn’t sure why.
I had about 10 months of sobriety at the time and I remember wondering “What is happening here?” I got on my knees by the side of the bed and asked my Higher Power.
I realized that I was experiencing Love for myself. I thought “this is what self-acceptance feels like.”
I felt that Love permeating throughout my body. It felt like God’s Love. It was amazing and it felt so good.
Then I realized it was pressing in and outside of me. In fact, it felt like the whole room was filled with love and it was pushing against the walls.
I was weeping as I experienced this incredible feeling. I felt humbled and so very blessed. I looked around for the Source of the love, thinking, like Moses, that maybe I’d see an angel or a burning bush!
But there was nothing I could see with my eyes, just this incredible feeling of bliss.
And then my tiny brain realized that this big Love was coming from me! I was radiating it!
I was thinking maybe the Source was within me. I felt a YES and rushes of confirmation.
All of my years of religious upbringing changed at that moment. I realized and I knew that my Higher Power was a part of me. Not outside of me. Not my tiny brain, but in my Soul’s nerve and in my big heart.
After that, I began to treat myself a lot better. I came to “accept” who I was and where I was in my life. I had more peace and faith that things were going to get a lot better.
Things like that don’t happen to me every day but they have happened many times throughout my life because I continued to travel “the road less traveled.” (This was one of the first books I read by Dr. Scott Peck in sobriety and it has made all the difference.)
The way that I continue to set myself up for success in life is by putting myself first with my self-care routine. Then I can be there for others.
The first thing I do each day is meditating for 20 minutes. Then I exercise for 20-40 minutes. Then I shower and have breakfast with my sweetheart.
After I finish eating, I read aloud from 2 books: daily reading and a few pages from another book we both agree on. (Currently reading My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies by Resma Menakem. We, and 25,000 other readers, highly recommend it.)
This morning routine is the foundation of my recovery, inner leadership, self-care, and self-esteem.
Because I practice these rituals or whatever you want to call them, I have a full cup and can be there for my clients, my kids, and grandkids, my friends, my mom, my partner and have room for new relationships.
I’ve invited Holly Hartman to be my guest on the Emerge. Evolve. Lead. podcast this week and she has created an amazing program called the Solo Date Challenge.
This challenge is for women who want to build a better relationship with themselves. This type of challenge will build your self-esteem and set you up to be the person you want to fall in love with.
When you do that, everything changes. Your inner leader is full, at peace, and open for new and exciting opportunities in life. Don’t miss this episode!
All my best,
Maureen
P.S. If you are a small business owner, an entrepreneur, or a leader managing people in an organization, you’ll want to attend my presentation for the Better Business Bureau’s webinar series on July 8th, at 1:00 PM. See more info below and how to register!
